Toy



E. ERICKSON.

TOY.

APPLICATION FILED DEC- 6, 1920.

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. E. ERICKSON.

TOY.

APPLICATION FILED 05ce, 1920.

1 95,565. Patented Nov. 1, 1921.

2 SHEETSSHEET 2.

EDWARD ERICKSON,

PATENT OFFICE.

OF FRESNO, CALIFORNIA.

TOY.

Application filed December 6, 1920.

To all whom it may concern.

Be it known that I, EDWARD ERIcKsoN, citizen of the United States, residing at Fresno, in the county of Fresno and State of California, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Toys, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to an improved toy and has as one of its principal objects to provide a device of this character wherein suitable figures may be caused to appear and disappear at different locations, thus suggesting the kindergarten game of peek-aboo.

The invention has as a further object to provide a toy employing vertically and laterally shiftable figures and wherein said figures may be actuated for simultaneous movement.

And a still further object of the invention is to provide a toy which will be attractive in appearance, will create and sustain the interest of children, may be produced at minimum cost, and will not easily get out of order.

Other and incidental objects will appear hereinafter.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of my improved toy,

Fig. 2 is an end elevation of the device,

ig. 3 is a side elevation of the device, partly in section, one of the side walls of the housing thereof being removed, and the figures employed being illustrated in normal inactive position,

Fig. 4 is a view similar to Fig. 3, the figures of the device, however, being shown in the positions which they assume when actuated, and

Fig. 5 is a sectional view of the toy on the line 5-5 of Fig. 3, looking in the direction of the arrows.

In carrying the invention into effect, I employ a housing which may be made from any suitable material and which includes a base 10. Rising from said base are side walls 11 and 12 and front and rear end walls 13 and 14, respectively, the side walls being seated at their lower margins in suitable grooves in the base and the end walls lying flush with the ends of the base. Disposed between the side walls 11 and 12 of the housing adjacent the forward end wall 13 thereof, is a short partition wall 15 dividing the housing into communicating compartments Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 1, 1921. Serial No. 428,510.

one of which is, as will be seen by reference to Figs. 3 and 4 of the drawings, consider ably larger than the other. As will be noted, the smaller or forward compartment is open at its top while the larger or rear compartment is normally closed by a removable cover plate or top wall 16, resting at its ends upon the upper edges of the partition wall 15 and the end wall 1 1. The housing may, of course, be decorated as desired to present a pleasing appearance and formed in the side walls thereof are pairs of alined sight openings 17, 18, 19 and 20, while in the forward end wall 13 is formed a single sight opening 21. J ournaled in the lower side of the base 10 of the housing are rollers 22 and threaded through the end wall 13 to engage the base is a screw eye 23 to which may be attached a suitable flexible element such as a string or cord, conventionally illustrated at 24 in F 3, so that the device may, if desired, be drawn about.

Mounted within the forward housing compartment is an upright member or figure 25 resting at its lower end upon a block 26 suitably secured to the base 10 of the housing. said figure being reciprocable vertically to alternately project slightly above and drop within the housing. The figure is slidably secured in the compartment by a suitable pin 27 extending through a medial vertical slot 28 in the figure and engaged at its ends in the front end wall and the partition wall of the housing. At its lower end portion the figure is provided with a medial notch 29 while at its upper end portion the figure is preferably formed to represent a head having portrayed thereon four oppositely directed faces, the head being surmounted by the representation of a hat. Pivoted near one end within the larger of the housing compartments is a substantially horizontally disposed actuating lever 30 mounted upon a suitable pivot pin 31 engaged therethrough and secured at its ends in the side walls of the housing. The forward end portion of the lever projects into the notch 29 of the figure 25 to effect reciprocation thereof when the lever is rocked and normally rests upon a block 32 fixed to or formed integral with the block 26. Journaled in the side walls of the housing near the rear end thereof is a stub shaft 34: tends a cam element 35, the ends of which are adapted to selectively engage the rear end portion of the lever for actuating said through which exlever and, as will be noted by reference to Fig. 1, the stub shaft extends somewhat beyond the outer face of the side wall 11 to provide a finger piece for rotating the shaft. Rising from the actuating lever medially thereof is an integral preferably flat figure 36, the upper end portion of which is, in this instance, designed to portray the head and upper portion of the body of a person. The flat sides of said figure are each painted or otherwise ornamented to assist in the portrayal. Integrally formed upon the upper end portion of the figure 36 to extend laterally with respect thereto is a figure 37 substantially embodying a counterpart of the upper portion of the figure 36.

As will now be noted, the figures of the toy, will, by gravity, normally assume the positions most clearly illustrated in Figs. 1, 2 and 3 of the drawings. As there shown, three of the faces upon the head of the figure 25 may be viewed through the sight openings 17 and 21 of the housing while the figures 36 and 37 will register with and be visible through the pairs of alined sight openings 18 and 19 respectively. However, upon rotation of the shaft 34, the cam element 35 will engage and depress the rear end portion of the actuating lever 30, thereby rocking said lever and elevating the forward end portion thereof to shift the figure 25 upwardly. The head of the figure 25 will then disappear at the openings 20 and 21 and partially appear above the housing so thatthe eyes of the figure will seem to peep over the housing walls. Coincidently, the figures 36 and 37 will, by being rocked, seem to jump away from the figure 25 as it moves upwardly .and when rocked the figures 36 and 37 will disappear at the sight openings 18 and 19 and appear at the sight openings 19 and 20 respectively. hen the actuating lever is released by the cam element, the figure 25 will gravitate to its original position so that the head thereof will again appear at the sight opening 17 and 21 while the lever 30 will drop back against the block 32 so that the figures 36 and 37 will again appear at the sight openings 18 and 19 respectively. I accordingly provide a toy wherein the movement of the figures will simulate the game of peek-a-boo and a toy which will provehighly attractive in practical use. However, it is to be understood that the representations upon the figures as well as the number of figures may be varied, if desired, without departing from the spirit of the invention.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new is:

1. The combination with a housing having a wall provided with spaced sight openings, of a primary figure mounted for vertical movement within the housing and movable to project at the top thereof, a secondary figure normally visible through one of the sight openings, and means coacting with both figures for actuating the secondary figure to shift the same to a position visible through another of said openings and simultaneously elevate the primary figure.

2. A toy of the character described including a vertically slidable figure, a pivoted lever mounted to coact with the figure for actuating said figure and having a second figure upstanding therefrom and. movable in an arcuate path laterally with respect to the first figure when the lever is swung, and actuating means for the lever.

3, In a toy, the combination of a housing, an individually movable figure vertically shiftable therein, a lever coacting with the figure for shifting said figure, the figure being shiftable independently of the lever, and rigid means extending through the figure for limiting the figure in its upward movement and connecting the figure with the housing.

4. In a toy, the combination of a housing having a wall provided with sight openings, a figure slidable within the housing and movable vertically with respect to one of said openings, a lever pivoted within the housing to coact with said figure for shifting the figure and having a second figure upstanding therefrom movable in an arcuate path laterally with respect to another of said openings when the lever is swung, and actuating means for the lever.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature.

EDWARD ERICKSON, [11. s.] 

